Top and bottom chine construction for



De@ 31, 1953 H. L. CARPENTER er1-Al. 3,116,001

TOP AND BOTTOM CHIME CNSTRUCTION FORI PLASTIC-LINED FIBER CONTAINERS 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 2'7, 1961 Dec. 3l, 1963 H. l.. CARPENTER ETALTOP AND BOTTOM CHIME CONSTRUCTION FOR PLASTIC-LINED FIBER CONTAINERS 3Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Got. 27. 1961 FIG. 6

Dec. 31, 1963 H. l.. CARPENTER ETAI.

TOP AND BOTTOM CHIME CONSTRUCTION FOR PLASTIC-LINED FIBER CONTAINERS 3Sheets-Sheet f5 Filed Oct. 27, 1961 rllfff,

n L l. MM5 r WMM W 1.,.. .wd mr L m f n m a United States Patent O 3 116001 TOP AND BOTTOM CI-IIME CONSTRUCTION FOR PLASTIC-UNED FIBERCONTAINERS Herbert L. Carpenter, Amityville, and Herbert L. Carpenter,Jr., Babylon, N.Y., assignors to The Greif Bros. Cooperage Corporation,Delaware, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Filed Oct. 27, 1961, Ser. No.148,247 7 Caims. (Cl. 229-55) This invention relates to plastic-linedcontainers and more particularly to plastic-lined fiber containers aswell as their method of manufacture whereby liquids and semiliquids aremost effectively stored and shipped therein.

At the present time it is common practice to ship and store bulkmaterial of liquid or semi-liquid form in plasticlined liber drumsranging in size up to and beyond 55 gallons in capacity. These drums arerelatively speaking inexpensive and light in weight ibut must be offsuch a nature to adequately withstand the expected use and abuse.Leakage or contamination of the drum contents should not occur under thecontemplated conditions.

However, plastic liners now in use are usually associated with adisk-type of plastic base forming part of the bottom closure wherein aseam is inevitably created at the juncture of the plastic parts. Thepresence of this seam produces a point of weakness at which rupturingwill occur, if the lining is to fail, thereby rendering it pervious.

A number of lined liber drums additionally enclose a metallic chimestrip at the drum upper end. In the case of corrosive liquids, chemicalsand other products, in the drum, the metal chime strip would oftentimesbe attacked or degraded. Similarly, the metallic chime strip would beobnoxious to or incompatible with the contained substance butnevertheless vbe exposed `thereto because of faulty drum construction orseam failure at or near the top closure.

An important object of our present invention is to correct thedisadvantages of prior art lined drums by providing a superior liquidtight seam between the bottom closure and shell by effectively sealingthe junction between the lining of the bottom and shell and extending itinto the lower bead of the drum so that during handling, shipping andstorage. and the use and abuse incident thereto, the lining at thebottom chime will remain impervious.

Another object is to provide a plastic-lined iber drum utilizing apreformed lining strip for protecting the metallic chime usuallyappearing at the upper end of such drums, from Contact with thecontained material and simultaneously cooperates in providing a superiorseal with a top closure.

A further object is to provide an economically constructed plastic-linedber drum which may be readily manufactured and at the same time meet thestandards and speciiications of the various rules and regulationsgoverning the shipment of liquids and semi-liquid materials in fiberdrums which are substantially liquid-tight, impervious to contaminatingsurroundings, and which possesses substantially no weak spots or zonesthat would increase the danger of rupture of the hermetic seal thusprovided by the liner.

In accordance with the present invention, plastic-lined drums arcmanufactured by initially providing a tubular shell made from laminatedlayers of fibrous material open at both of its ends, Reinforcing metalchime strips are exteriorally mounted at both ends of the shell and asis usual practice, external grooves and internal shoulders are thenformed at both ends to extend completely around the circumference of theshell a short distance from the respective peripheral edges. Apredetermined length of liner sheet material is inserted within theconnes of the shell and, because of the inherent flexibility andelasticity, is made to conform and follow the contours of the shell ICCinterior. The longitudinally extending seam of the liner side walls issecured by application of length of tape suitable for such purposes. Inthe event, trimming of the top and bottom of the liner side walls isnecessary or desirable, such can be accomplished at this time. Informing the bottom closure, a plastic head is employed having asubstantially disk shaped body portion from the periphery of whichextends a depending apron. The bottom closure is placed across the loweropen end of the shell such that the plastic head rests upon the internalshoulder at this end and the apron is against the liner side Walls. Thebottom bead construction is then fabricated, wherein an inturncd bead isformed that interlocks the lower peripheral associated edges of theplastic apron and liner, and is protected by the reinforcing lowermetallic chime strip. The associated lower peripheral sectors of thedepending apron and liner are heat sealed to one another to strengthenand unite the juncture therebetween. Accordingly, a substantiallyleakproof and impervious bottom chime construction is thus created thateffectively resists severe handling and the contemplated forces andpressures.

In forming the top chime construction of the contemplated leakproofplastic-lined fiber drum. a preformed lining strip is mounted on theupper end of the shell subsequent to the formation of the top inturnedbead. This lining strip will rest upon the liner side walls over theupper internal shoulder and extend over the inner and upper zones of themetallic chime strip as well as a section of the upper and outer zonesof the metallic chime strip short of the external groove therein. Thelower peripheral edge portion of the lining strip is then heat sealed tothe associated surfaces of the liner side wall to seal the juncturetherebetween.

In addition, when employing a top cover or closure, having a plasticlining seal, the outer peripheral head section of the lining strip isthen heat sealed to the lining seal of the cover to effectively sealthis seam and thereby provide a substantially hermetically sealed andleakproof' lined fiber drum of superior construction.

Other obi-:cts and advantages will become apparent from the detaileddescription of the invention which is to be taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings showing a somewhat preferred embodimentthereof, and in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view with certain parts broken away and removedof a plastic-lined fiber drum fabricated in accordance with the presentinvention and having a rover with `a central filler and emptyingaperture and oap therefor secure-d in place by means of a locking rimassembly;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the drum taken along the line Z--Zof FlG. l;

FlG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view particularly showingthe taped seam of the liner side walls together with the layer ofadhesive interposed between the liner and liber shell;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a liber shell on the one handand the contained plastic liner for the side Walls on the other, withthe liber shell having top and bottom metallic chime strips and theshell and chime strips being contoured so as to provide an externalgroove and internal shoulder;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinally extending sectional view of the assembledfiber shell and liner of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of the upper lining stripemployed to complete the drum top closure;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of the plastic head incorporatedinto the bottom closure in forming the bottom chime construction andrendering it substantially lealtproof;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the top beadconstruction of the drum having associated therewith the upper liningstrip;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragnientary sectional View of the bottom of thefiber shell at such time as it receives the parts constituting thebottom closure, including the plastic head, prior to the bottom beadformation and chime construction;

FIG. l() is a similar fragmentary sectional view following the formationof the bottom bead and chime construction;

FIG. ll is an enlarged sectional view of the upper end of the finishedber drum having associated therewith a top closure or cover having aplastic seal, heat sealed, to the upper lining strip.

In the accompanying drawings, we have shown a liber drum 20, fabricatedin accorda with the present iuvention, having a tubular shell n.2, whichmay be of any cross-sectional shape and which is preferably made fromconvolutely wound laminated layers of fibrous material such asltraftboard, fiberboard. or the like. The fiber shell 22, is usuallymade by winding a sheet oi kraltboard around a mandrel with suitableadhesives coating the surfaces of the board and permeating the pores andbers thereof. The bottom end of the shell 2.?. is provided with apermanently attached closure 2li and the upper end with a removablecover 26 constituting one of the number of upper closures that may beincorporated along with our drum. The illustrated cover may be of theconventional steel variety which is ordinarily relcasably locked inplace by means of a locking rim assembly 23, which may be of the typedisclosed in our commonly assigned U.S. Patent No. 2,884,l76, grantedApril E3, 1959, and U.S. Patent No. 2,966,378, granted December 27,i960. As illustrated, a centrali located filling and emptying screwfitting and Cap may project from the top closure 26. A lling fitting andvent fitting in most cases will be somewhat recessed in the top closure26.

The interior of the shell 22 is lined with a plastic liner 30,fabricated from sheet material and constituting the side walls of thelining. At the base of the drum 2i), a plastic head 32 forms part of thebottom closure 24 and forms an impervious seam with the side Walls ofliner 3l). ln order to complete the seal for the interior of the drum 20in accordance with the illustrated embodiment, the cover 26 may beprovided with a preformed cover seal 34 also fabricated from a suitableresinous material and which cooperates in providing a substantiallyleakproof top closure by cooperating with a lining strip 80. This liningstrip is preferably preformed for intimate association with the upperend of the drum 20 as shown- The end portions of the drum 20 may bestrengthened in the usual manner by providing upper and lower metalreinforcing chimes 33 and 49 around both the upper and lower endsrespectively of the shell 22;.

The liner 3i) constituting the side walls of the illustrated embodimentis fabricated from a thermoplastic material provided in sheet form. Thematerial selected will have the desired characteristics proven by theintended use of the finished drum lll and the nature of the liquid orsemiliquid substance to be contained therein. In this connection,consideration will be given to the materials substantial imperviousness,chemical inertness, tensile strength, non-toxicity and its potentialdetrimental effects on the contained substances which may includechemicals, combustibles, comestibles, or food products. Thermoplasticmaterials that may be utilized include polyethylene, polypropylene,nylon, and the like, to mention a few. In this connection, similarmaterial considerations must be given to the selection and employment ofthe cover seal 34 and bottom plastic head 32 as will become eventuallyapparent.

In forming the chime reinforced drum 20, the chime strips 38 and 40 areinitially placed around the fiber shell 22. To this end, the upper chimestrip is fitted tightly around the shell and extends from a shortdistance below the upper end upwardly, overlaping the top. At the sametime, it projects downwardly for a short distance into the interior ofthe shell as shown most clearly in FIG. 5. A short distance from theupper end of the shell 22 the liber body and the metal reinforcing chime38 is deformed inwardly so as to provide an external groove 42 andinternal shoulder le.

Similarly, the bottom reinforcing chime 4t] is initially placed aroundthe lower end of the shell 22, but merely overlaps the peripheral edgethereof. The bottom chime srip itl and liber body are then deformed toprovide the external groove 46 and internal shoulder 4S. The foregoingassociation of the chime strips 33 and Ll() with the fiber shell 2E ismore fully disclosed in our prior US. Patent No. 2,884J76, granted April28, i959.

The liber shell 2.2, with its tightly fitting upper and lower reinforcirchimes Sil and di) is now prepared to receive the lining Under suchcircumstances, the sheet material trof-.i which the liner Pill is formedwill be a sucient length depending upon the size of the iinishcd drumZtl and shell 2?. to provide a butt joint, defining a longitudinallyextending seam 50. In this connection, reference is made to FIG. 5wherein it will be noted that clue to the flexibility and resiliency ofthe thermoplastic material employed, the liner Btl will conforni to thecontours of the shell interior substantially as illustrated. The seam E@is then sealed by means of an adequate length of tape 52 by heat sealingor suitable adhesive. The application of such tape over a seam of aplastic lining, of the type disclosed, is common-place in the art.

ln order to anchor the liner 3l) within the drum and to the inner wallsof the shell 22, a compatible adhesive 54 is interposed between theliner 3i) and the shell 22, as clearly shown in FIG. 3. Adhesives ofthis nature are well known in the art.

The top chime construction may now be completed. Initially, the upperliner section 56 is removed by trimming along line 5S, either manuallyor automatically, radially inwardly from the inner peripheral end of theupper chime strip 38. In this connection, the downturned innerperipheral edge of the upper chime strip 38 is designated by numeral 6!)and in the embodiment disclosed is slightly spaced from associatedsurfaces of tfte upper end of the fiber shell 22. Accordingly, followingthe removal of the upper liner section 56, the upper peripheral edge ofthe liner 30 may be readily forced into the existing crevice between thechime and inner face of the shell. A rounded bead 62 is then formed andwith the same operation the inner periphery 60 of the upper chime strip38 is curved downwardly and inwardly so as to encase and pocket thebead. As will be clearly observed in FIG. 8, the upper end of the linerside Wall 3i) embraces the inner peripheral edge 60 of the chime strip38 and at the same time is embedded in the bead to provide an effectiveseal to thereby prevent undesirable penetration of the contents of theultimately formed fiber drum 20 through the fibrous side Walls at thisjuncture. For details and an acceptable technique of completing the topchime construction, reference is made to our U.S. Patent No. 2,884,176,granted April 28, 1959.

A bottom reinforcing chime construction may be similarly completed inaccordance with the teachings of this patent. The bottom closure,however, will include the preformed plastic head 32 having a centraldisk-shaped portion 64 and a laterally extending depending apron 66. Asshown, the corner defined by the disk-shaped portion 64 and apron 66 isplaced against the internal shoulder 48 through the interposed liner 30.The apron 66, on the other hand, is in direct surface-to-surface contactwith the base of the liner 30 and may, at this time or at any pointprior to the formation of thc bottom bead, be heat sealed to the lineralong the zone 68 to hermetically close their juncture. ln thisconnection, the plastic head 32 should be of a compatible material forsuch purposes and when the liner 30 is formed from a thermoplasticmaterial should itself be a compatible thermoplastic. To compicze thebottom closure 24, a cushioning bottom spacer is placed in engagementwith the bottom face of the disk portion 64. An outer reinforcing lberlayer 72, also cupped shaped and having an annular depending apron 74,covers the outer face of the spacer while its depending apron bearsagainst the apron 66 of the plastic head 32.

The finished bottom chime construction is illustrated in FIG. and willinclude the bead 76 encased and protected by the inner peripheral edge78 of the bottom chime strip 40 which is pressed so as to be curvedupwardly and inwardly. As illustrated, the plastic head 32, spacer 70and the outer brous cup 72 Will be firmly retained between the innerperipheral edge 78 of the bottom chime strip 40 and the internalshoulder 48 of the fiber shell 22. The aprons 66 and 74, together withthe associated sectors of the base of the liner 30, will be interlockedwithin the bead 76 as shown in FIG. 10. Thus it should be apparent thata liquid-tight seal is provided at the bottom chime construction; andthrough the employment of the heat sealed zone 68, this seal will bemaintained notwithstanding severe handling of a drum and appliedpressures to the bottom chime strip 40.

In completing the top closure for the drum 20, we provide a preformedplastic lining strip 80 which will conform to the chime reinforcedbeaded upper end of the drum 20. Thus the lining strip 80 will followthe contours of the shoulder 44 through the underlying upper portion ofthe plastic liner 30 as shown and then the uppermost portion of themetallic chime strip 38 as well as its outer surface short of theexternal groove 42 thereof. The lining strip 80 will consequentlyprotect those portions of the metallic chime strip 38 that mayultimately come in contact with the drum 20 to either corrode the metalor injuriously affect the contents. In order to further assure this endresult, the lower periphery of the lining strip 80 is heat sealed to theassociated sectors of the liner 30 along the zone 82. For this reasonthe material from which the lining strip 80 is fabricated should becompatible with that employed for the liner 30 and to this end may be ofthe thermoplastic variety.

Reference is now made to FIG. 11 wherein the top closure 26 having apreformed plastic cover seal 34 is shown as being employed toeffectively close the top of the drum 20. The seal 34 is, however,extended to include the integral strip 84 extending downwardly beyondthe peripheral edge 86 of the cover 26. Accordingly this strip 84 isadapted to be advantageously heat sealed to the associated surfaces ofthe sealing strip 80 along the zone 88. Thus, a further provision for ahermetically sealed plastic lined fiber drum is presented and whenassociated with a locking rim assembly 28 (see FIG. 1) optimum sealingof the top closure of the drum is possible.

An externally threaded central filling and emptying fitting may beprovided on the top closure 26 for receiving a cap as is customarilydone in the art to which our invention pertains. Where necessary aflexible and compressible gasket may be used where plastic elements arenot ordinarily heat sealed together, as for example, at the juncturebetween the lining strip 80 and the cover seal 34.

As will be apparent from the foregoing, a plastic lined ber drum isprovided with effectively sealed seams which are capable of withstandingthe use and abuse contemplated during shipping and storage. It will alsobe realized that the foregoing objects and advantages are mosteffectively obtained. Although a speciiic embodiment of our inventionhas been described and illustrated, various changes therein will becomeevident to one skilled in the art. Therefore our invention is to bedetermined by the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. An improved drum for substantially dry, solid, semiliquid, liquidmaterials, and 171e like, comprising a tubular shell made from .voundlaminated layers of brous material, a metal reinforcing chime disposedaround said tubular shell at one cnd thereof, said shell and said chimebeing formed into an external groove and internal shoulder extendingcompletely around the drum a short distance from the end thereof, aplastic liner disposed within said shell and being in substantially firmsurface engagement therewith, a closure disposed in the reinforced endof said shell and abutting against said internal shoulder, said closureincluding a plastic head having a laterally extending apron theperiphery of the free end of which being proximate to the periphery ofthe associated end of the liner with the head abutting said liner atsaid internal shoulder, said shell and said chime, beyond said shoulder,being curved inwardly and formed into an inturned bead, said closurehaving its peripheral edges interlocked with said inturned bead, withsaid apron and said liner along the associated periphery of both beingfused integrally to one another and cooperating to provide a sealingmeans at the juncture of said closure and said liner for preventingpenetration and leakage of said material therethrough.

2. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein said sealing meansis provided. by heat sealing the associated periphery of said apron andsaid liner.

3. The invention in accordance with claim l wherein said head comprisesa substantially flat disk-shaped portion, and said apron extendinglaterally from said dislishaped portion at the periphery thereof.

4. An improved drum for substantially dry, solid, semiliquid, liquidmaterials, and the like, comprising a tubular shell made from Woundlaminated layers of fibrous material and having bottom and top ends, abottom closure at the bottom end of said shell, a metal reinforcingchime disposed around said shell at the top end thereof, said shell andsaid chime being formed into an external groove and an internal shoulderextending completely around the drum a short distance from the upperperipheral edge of the top end thereof, said shell and said chime,beyond said shoulder being curved inwardly and formed into an inturnedbead, a plastic liner disposed interiorly of said shell and being insubstantial firm surface-to-surface engagement therewith, a lining stripdisposed on said shell on the top end thereof and conforming to thecontour of associated surfaces of said shell, and said strip and linerbeing fused integrally to one another and cooperating to provide sealingmeans for preventing penetration and leakage of said materialtherethrough.

5. The invention in accordance with claim 4 wherein said lining strip isdisposed over said liner on said internal shoulder and is furtherwrapped around said inturned bead.

6. An invention in accordance with claim 5 wherein said sealing means isprovided by heat sealing the bottom section of said lining strip to saidliner.

7. The invention in accordance with claim 6 wherein the upper end ofsaid shell is open, a top closure disposed over the shell upper end,said top closure includes a plastic seal in substantialsurface-to-surface engagement with said lining strip, and said seal andsaid lining strip being sealed to one another to seal the shell upperfrom unintentional loss of the contained material.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,597,889 Hulbert Aug. 31, 1926 2,343,716 Josoano et al. Mar. 7, 19442,638,820 Barnes May 19, 1953 2,727,673 Bergstrom Dec. 20, 19552,794,584 Geist June 4, 1957 2,986,319 Bierman et al May 30, 19613,058,642 Hester Oct. 16, 1962

1. AN IMPROVED DRUM FOR SUBSTANTIALLY DRY, SOLID, SEMILIQUID, LIQUIDMATERIALS, AND THE LIKE, COMPRISING A TUBULAR SHELL MADE FROM WOUNDLAMINATED LAYERS OF FIBROUS MATERIAL, A METAL REINFORCING CHIME DISPOSEDAROUND SAID TUBULAR SHELL AT ONE END THEREOF, SAID SHELL AND SAID CHIMEBEING FORMED INTO AN EXTERNAL GROOVE AND INTERNAL SHOULDER EXTENDINGCOMPLETELY AROUND THE DRUM A SHORT DISTANCE FROM THE END THEREOF, APLASTIC LINER DISPOSED WITHIN SAID SHELL AND BEING IN SUBSTANTIALLY FIRMSURFACE ENGAGEMENT THEREWITH, A CLOSURE DISPOSED IN THE REINFORCED ENDOF SAID SHELL AND ABUTTING AGAINST SAID INTERNAL SHOULDER, SAID CLOSUREINCLUDING A PLASTIC HEAD HAVING A LATERALLY EXTENDING APRON THEPERIPHERY OF THE FREE END OF WHICH BEING PROXIMATE TO THE PERIPHERY OFTHE ASSOCAITED END OF THE LINER WITH THE HEAD ABUTTING SAID LINER ATSAID INTERNAL SHOULDER, SAID SHELL AND SAID CHIME, BEYOND SAID SHOULDER,BEING CURVED INWARDLY AND FORMED INTO AN INTURNED BEAD, SAID CLOSUREHAVING ITS PERIPHERAL EDGES INTERLOCKED WITH SAID INTURNED BEAD, WITHSAID APRON AND SAID LINER ALONG THE ASSOCIATED PERIPHERY OF BOTH BEINGFUSED INTEGRALLY TO ONE ANOTHER AND COOPERATING TO PROVIDE A SEALINGMEANS AT THE JUNCTURE OF SAID CLOSURE AND SAID LINER FOR PREVENTINGPENETRATION AND LEAKAGE OF SAID MATERIAL THERETHROUGH.